Disclaimer: I don't own Evangelion…
Alrighty then…this is as far as I've got written down in my notebook, so I'll be improvising in the next chapter. I hope you like this one. I'll try to be more descriptive and all that stuff….Oh, and there is one last part taken from the manga in here…so don't sue me…
There is a really WAFFY part between Rei and Shinji and some sexual content…
You know the key…
CHAPTER SIX: VOID
~~~
Kaji stepped out of the navy blue jeep, followed by Misato and Ritsuko. It was nine pm and they were in the parking lot of Kaji's favorite bar/restaurant, the Bolero.
The moon shone bright, high above the earth, it's silver rays hitting the black asphalt and bouncing off, illuminating the rows of shiny cars. Kaji's eyes just happened to pass over Misato's face at the exact moment when the moon had bent all its glimmering rays toward her eyes. Beautiful… he thought.
"Come on," Kaji said sadly, leading the two ladies toward the building.
It was one story tall with big, shiny windows. There were wine glasses and cherries painted onto all sides of the building, 'The Bolero' shining brightly from a sign hanging above the doorway.
As Kaji reached the door, he grabbed for the handle and opened it widely for the two women behind him. Ritsuko smiled and uttered a friendly, 'thank you', but Misato only grumbled and pushed passed. Damn…not a very good start…
The inside was bright and bustling. The walls were painted white, the floor carpeted in a dark shade of blue. The ceiling was white and hanging with extravagant chandeliers, their crystal lights glimmering.
Kaji led Ritsuko and Misato through rows of hard wood tables and to a booth situated in the corner of the building, away from most of the other tables. He took a seat opposite Ritsuko and Misato.
"I hope I have a good time tonight…for your sake," Misato said grumpily to Kaji. Her purple hair was pulled back into a tight ponytail and she had bright red lipstick on. Adorning a bright purple dress, Misato looked truly gorgeous in Kaji's eyes.
Kaji sighed and shifted his gaze to Akagi. She was wearing a white dress and had her blonde hair done the normal way she wore it. Her lips were covered with a dark purple lipstick and she wore large hoop earrings.
"I need to use the restroom," Misato said impatiently, getting up from the booth and making her way across the room toward the door that read, 'Ladies'.
Kaji sighed again and pushed out the noise of all the other people sitting around him. He ran his hand through his hair and pulled out a cigarette. Fishing for his lighter, he looked back up at Ritsuko, who seemed to be fairly happy about something.
"What?" Kaji asked, finally finding his silver lighter and flicking the orange flame on. He lit his cigarette and inhaled a deep puff, putting the lighter away.
"Don't give up yet," Ritsuko said, referring to Kaji's situation with Misato. She still had that content look upon her face.
"Why not?" Kaji asked helplessly, taking the cigarette out of his mouth and exhaling a large puff of smoke. It floated into the air before being sucked up by some air-cleaning device stuck into the ceiling.
"Because she still likes you. She's just playing tough girl and not showing it yet," Ritsuko replied, turning and looking around the room to make sure no one was in earshot.
"Really?" Kaji asked excitedly, forgetting about the cigarette in his hand. He let it burn idly, spreading its toxin into the air.
"Yes, but I have something else to say…Stay away from NERV's…more delicate matters…or you'll regret it," the blonde said, taking out a pocket mirror and adjusting her makeup.
Kaji nodded and brought the death stick back to his mouth, inhaling deeply from it again, not really paying attention to Ritsuko's rather subtle warning.
Misato appeared again, walking back through the rows of tables and seating herself next Ritsuko again. She deliberately avoided Kaji's gaze.
"May I take your orders?" a waiter asked. He had weaved his way through the people and made it to the three NERV employees.
He was tall and appeared about nineteen. His hair was short and brown, his eyes a bright green color. Two silver rings adorned his left ear.
"Oh yea…sure…I'll have a Yebisu and…" Misato said. Kaji didn't catch the rest of her order. He just spaced off, thinking about what he would say to Misato. I'm still in love with you, can we just start over? No…that won't work… he kept thinking.
***
After all their food was finished and Misato had become plastered, Kaji felt it was time to head out. He nodded to Akagi and together, Kaji and Ritsuko led a severely drunken Misato to Kaji's jeep.
She fell into the soft leather seats and hummed stupidly as she watched all the lights passing.
"Aren't you going to get in?" Kaji asked Ritsuko, who had begun to walk away. She turned and shook her head at him, a very solemn look upon her face. She headed in the general direction of Gendo Ikari's residence, but Kaji didn't notice.
Kaji drove off; his jeep carrying the two adults passed several dull buildings. Tokyo-3 at night was not much more exciting than in the morning and afternoon. It was just as dull and just as boring.
There was silence except for the low humming of the engine and Misato's drunken slurs. She yawned and closed her eyes, quickly falling asleep. Just twenty more minutes until I'll have to dump Misato at her apartment… Kaji thought. He put on some soft jazz music and put his full attention on the empty road.
As Kaji finally pulled up to the apartment, he stopped the car in a parking lot and looked wistfully at Misato. She was still sleeping, a little rivulet of drool escaping the side of her mouth.
Kaji chuckled slightly and picked her up into his arms. She opened her eyes and blinked several times. As Kaji set her down on the ground again, she stumbled and almost fell to the ground. She would have smashed her face if it weren't for Kaji.
Kaji bent low and took Misato onto his back, giving her a piggyback ride to a nearby bench.
"You need some fresh air," Kaji said, sitting her down on the bench and standing next to her, lighting up another cigarette.
"This's…b'yond pathetic…you takin' care of me…" Misato mumbled, a bit more sober than before, but still quite drunk.
"Oh no, it's just like old times…you drank…you got a piggyback ride," Kaji replied, grinning distantly as memories flooded back into his mind.
The bench was wooden and painted dark red, little flakes of paint peeling off here and there. The moonlight was shining down upon the two adults.
"Don't dump me off…like I dumped you…" Misato said after a long and awkward silence. She looked at the ground, sobering up every second of the conversation.
"It did come as a shock. Now, why bring that up? Though I guess it was my fault in the end," Kaji said, putting his cigarette out and lighting another one.
"Where ya…trying t'see how much y'could cheat…before I hated you?" Misato asked, her shoulder slumping even more.
"No…you were…special…" Kaji said, a grin spreading across his face. He turned to Misato, but saw that she had no change in posture.
"Liar," she said quietly. Kaji's grin disappeared and he looked at the purple haired woman sadly.
"You were never serious 'bout anyone…not that I was neither…" Misato continued, looking at the sky, tears starting to form at her eyes.
"What are you talking about? Your drunk," Kaji said, hurt showing in his voice as if it had been written all over it in bold pink marker.
"You weren't really lookin' at me…or any of those other girls…you were lookin' at something else…and then…once I realized…no matter how long we were together, you would never love me…like you meant it…" Misato drew her hand to her cheek and wiped a single tear.
Kaji pulled his cigarette from his mouth and dropped it to the floor.
"Misato?" he said quietly, sitting next to the woman.
"I told you about my father right? He never loved us like he meant it. It was always work first. My mother was always crying…but…one day…he died for me…" said Misato. She mentally relived that memory. Her father putting her into the capsule…the explosion…
"The Second Impact…" Kaji said.
"Kaji…you look a little like my father…" Misato said sadly. Kaji gently pulled Misato's face toward his and leaned in. And it happened…Kaji and Misato…kissed…
***
In the morning, Kaji slowly slipped out of Misato's bed and out of her apartment. The crisp morning air had no effect on Kaji's foreboding feelings.
He made his way to NERV headquarters and slid in the door. The hallway was dark, the lights not yet on. There was a thick shadow to his right.
"Hello Kaji," said the man from the shadows. He was Kaji's informant.
"What have you gotten for me?" Kaji asked impatiently.
"All of the businesses supposedly backing Eva and Marduk have so far turned out to be fronts. The next one you find probably won't be any different," the man said. His voice sounded deep and calm.
Suddenly, to Kaji's left, there was a small squeak and then the clicking of boots running against the polished floor.
"I got him," Kaji said, pulling a sleek looking black Beretta 9mm out of his jacket pocket. He ran down the dark corridor, following the footsteps until he came into an area lit by a nearby window.
There was a frightened security guard standing, trying to find a way to go. He was trapped.
Kaji aimed the gun at the guard's legs and pulled the trigger twice, once for each leg.
The man fell to the ground in a yelp of pain and lay, panting on the ground. Kaji walked to the guards side and looked down into the frightened face.
"I'm sorry…goodnight," Kaji said as he aimed at the man's face and pulled the trigger.
The round sounded loud in the cold dark of the hallway. The man's panting immediately stopped and a pool of blood formed around the body. And the guard would never see his family again…
***
Shinji slowly brought the knife to his arm. His body ached for the pain. The blade gleamed dangerously in the fluorescent lighting.
Pain gripped his nerves as the knife tore cleanly through the skin, red blood spilling down his arm. The red fluid pattered into the white sink and soon, the knife clattered into the porcelain sink too.
Shinji quickly washed all the blood from the knife and his arm, the crimson fluid spinning in circles before disappearing down the drain.
Rei will be back any moment now… Shinji thought, putting the knife away in the dishwasher before turning around.
The room was dim with white walls and a plain white carpet. The TV was off and everything else seemed to just gather dust.
Shinji heard the door open and close and heard slow footsteps. He ran to greet Rei…
The blue haired girl was putting her books into a drawer when Shinji walked up behind her and put his arms around her waist. A rather bold move, but Shinji and Rei had grown quite close since their encounter in the lunchroom.
"Hello Ikari," Rei said evenly, not fighting Shinji's embrace. Her lips almost curled into a smile, but her eyes definitely lit up considerably.
"You can call me Shinji, you know," Shinji said smiling. He let go of Rei and she turned to face him.
"Okay…Shinji," Rei said awkwardly. She stared into Shinji deep eyes and tried to ignore the battle going on inside her. What is this feeling?! Why can I not tell what it is? she thought. It annoyed her that she could not name the feeling of warmth she felt toward Shinji.
Shinji forced himself, despite his nerves, to move closer to Rei. He was trembling now, the general shake he got around girls.
She kept looking on, observing what he was doing. Her emotionless mask had disappeared. Around Shinji, she no longer used that look of indifference. On her face now was a look of curiosity and of desire.
Shinji hesitated slightly, his fear now threatening to overtake him. But Rei helped him by making the first move. She opened her lips and leaned forward. The two teens lips met yet again and this time, Shinji's tongue instinctively shot into Rei's mouth.
Rei pulled back, wondering what had just happened. She looked at Shinji's red face and saw shame. He was embarrassed for what he just did.
"What was that?" Rei asked, no anger showing in her voice. Only curiosity was present in her face and voice.
"I…uh…it was…a…f-french kiss…" Shinji muttered, looking at the ground. He felt his stomach bottom out and knew he could not run away.
"Hmm…" Rei surveyed Shinji for a while, her crimson eyes were wondering over his downcast face.
"It was enjoyable," she said finally, a slight, angelic smile passing over her features. She leaned in again and kissed Shinji, this time her own tongue shooting into Shinji's mouth.
Shinji felt his embarrassment give way to enjoyment and he ran his fingers through Rei's hair. She soon pulled away, however, but the honest smile was still upon her face.
Shinji felt his heart beating faster than ever before and felt a slight sweat break out over his brow.
The two teenagers sat on a bed, turning the TV on. Shinji put his shaky arms around Rei and Rei rested her head on Shinji's shoulder.
RING
"Ikari."
"We have another problem."
"What is it this time Akagi?"
"Well…Shinji and Rei are in a relationship…"
"Emotional?"
"Yes. They have strong feelings for one another."
"We'll have to fix that."
"And Commander?"
"What?"
"A security guard has gone missing…we suspect Kaji…"
"Have the third move in with Kaji…That'll slow his prying down…"
"Yes sir."
CLICK
"…"
Shinji sat in 01 with the control yokes in his hands. The dull gray chamber was just draining of LCL. The strange orange liquid smelled of blood….
"Good job Shinji! 70.345% synch ratio! Rei, yours is at 68.948%…Asuka…" Ritsuko trailed off.
"What? What is it?" Asuka asked, almost begging.
"52%…" Misato said over the link. Her voice was quiet and even. Asuka's pride
had just taken quite a bashing.
Shinji's entry plug opened and he felt that familiar feeling of disorientation for a moment. As his sense of direction became steadily clearer, he could see Asuka standing, tears streaming down her face.
As Shinji stepped out, Asuka shot him a look of pure hatred and venom. It pierced him harder than any of her insults and she ran off to the changing room, her sobs filling the hallway.
Shinji hurried after her, running down the hallway lit only by a couple flickering lights. He turned the corner and made his way into the locker room.
It was small and had two sides separated by a gray curtain. The tiled floor slanted downhill into a drain. Asuka was standing, pummeling a locker.
"Asuka…I'm sure it'll go down in a few days…" Shinji told the crying redhead. She looked at him with all the hate she could muster. Just a stupid idiot! her head screamed.
"You don't know anything! ANYTHING! You hear me!?" She clenched her fists at her side.
"Eva is my life! I work goddamn hard! You didn't do a fucking thing and you beat me! You know how that feels!? To be beaten by a fucked up selfish asshole and his puppet whore girlfriend?!" She screamed in his face, choking back more tears.
"I-I'm sorry…" Shinji muttered, looking at the ground. Asuka stared at him in disgust and walked off, not bothering to remove her plug-suit.
"Shinji?" Shinji turned to see Rei and Misato staring in surprise. Shinji looked at the ground and shrugged. He walked to the boy's side of the locker room to remove his plug-suit.
Misato shrugged and Rei walked over to join Shinji.
***
"The angel arrives tomorrow Shinji…Be ready to take the point position," Ritsuko said. Shinji nodded solemnly and took Rei's hand in his.
The blue haired girl stared down at his hand. Warmth passed over her. Is…is this…l-love? she thought.
"This will be your last night in the apartment with Rei, then you will move in with Kaji," Ritsuko said, her face not changing.
Misato and Shinji gasped in disbelief.
"WHAT!? What about Misato?" Shinji cried, not believing that he would not move back into Misato's apartment. It wasn't that he didn't like Kaji, no…Kaji was cool but Misato was like his mother.
"Commander's orders…" Ritsuko said, turning her back to the three people and walking away without another word.
Shinji turned to look at Misato, the same look of disbelief on her face. They looked at each other for a while before Shinji hugged her tightly, crying into her shoulder.
"Hey, hey…it's okay…we'll still see each other at work and stuff," Misato said reassuringly, patting Shinji's back, though she didn't sound to enthusiastic.
"I know…I just…Misato…you have been the closest I've ever had to a mother…" Shinji said, wiping his tears and looking into his surrogate mother's face.
"Thank you Shinji…I tried my best," she replied, smiling and blinking back the tear that had formed at the corner of her eye.
Shinji hung his head and turned to the door, pulling it open and leaving with Rei at his side. The two walked to the monorail and took it to their apartment…
***
Rei was lounging around the apartment in her undergarments. Shinji sputtered when he emerged from the bathroom and saw her.
"What's wrong Shinji?" she asked, totally oblivious to the cause of his discomfort.
"N-nothing…" he muttered as he took a seat next to her. He felt a sudden surge of warmth. The same feeling he associated with love. Although he had never really thought about it before, he felt an undying passion for Rei…an ongoing love like he wanted to spend the rest of his days with her.
As Shinji sat, soaking in his new discovery, Rei sat observing him, feeling the exact same feelings. As Shinji's gaze lifted and locked with Rei's, they both felt the sudden urge to share their feelings, in the hope that the other might understand.
"Shinji…I || Rei I…" They both stopped as they tried to speak at the same time.
"Go ahead Shinji," Rei said quietly. She sat, waiting intently on what he had wanted to say.
"Rei…whenever I'm around you…I get this warm feeling…you…make me happy Rei…happier than anyone has ever made me…ever…" Shinji said slowly, carefully choosing his words.
"Shinji… I feel the same way," Rei said, sighing in relief that Shinji could understand. She smiled at him, trying to pinpoint the word for the feeling.
"Rei…I know we've really not been serious until just recently…but Rei…I love you," Shinji said, blushing and looking into Rei's sunset eyes.
Rei looked at him, her calm demeanor unwavering. She reached her hand out and touched Shinji's cheek. That's what I feel…love…strange that I could not tell before… she thought.
"Shinji…I love you too…" Rei said finally, her voice calm. She leaned in and kissed Shinji lightly, before pulling away and smiling at him.
"You're beautiful…" Shinji said breathlessly as the realization hit him. She had the most angelic smile he had ever seen and her eyes just sparkled. He loved Rei…and she loved him…
Shinji pulled her delicate body into his arms and kissed her again. The kiss didn't last very long, for Shinji pulled away to watch his hand.
He summoned all his courage to make his hand gently make its way down Rei bare belly toward her panties. He had seen this maneuver in an adult-movie Toji had once gotten hold of. The girl had apparently liked it.
Shinji was now shaking badly, but didn't stop. He gulped back fear and slipped his hand totally into Rei's panties.
Her breathing came harder than he had ever heard it….
"I CAN'T BELIEVE HIM!!!" Misato yelled as she watched the TV screen. It showed everything that Shinji and Rei were doing. Though they were not having sexual intercourse, this was something that the two were not supposed to be doing.
"Calm down…he's no longer your charge…" Ritsuko said somberly, turning the screen off in disgust. Misato looked sad for a moment before turning and walking out.
Ritsuko picked up her cell phone.
"Commander? We have another problem with Shinji and Rei…"
***
Shinji jumped as the angel alarm sounded. Rei had been sleeping in his arms. They had not had sex, but had had to force themselves not to.
"The angel!" Shinji yelled. The angel was a whole day earlier than NERV had predicted.
The two teens jumped and pulled on their school uniforms. They hopped around, pulling on socks and shoes and then rushed for the door.
As the two reached the locker rooms, they didn't even bother to pull the curtains as they hurriedly dressed into their tight plug suits.
Shinji rushed towards the door, but tripped and fell. He got back up with a grunt and rubbed his bloody lip as he charged for the Eva cages.
Shinji jumped into the entry plug for 01 and awaited for the LCL to fill the capsule.
"Activating 01 and 00," Maya said over the communications link. Shinji saw the glittering orange liquid fall into the gray tube and felt its coolness crawl up his body.
As the Evas activated, Shinji saw the Eva cages come into his view. He gripped the control yokes and willed the large Eva to walk for the elevators, which would carry him to the surface.
As the elevator shot Rei and Shinji to the surface, they saw 02 were waiting for 01 to take the point position instead of taking it herself.
Asuka didn't say anything. Shinji walked into the lead and willed the Eva to walk forward. 02 and 00 followed patiently.
"Shinji. Remember that this is the angel from the training. Try and fire a few riffle rounds into it from afar. If that doesn't work, we'll have to see about Progressive Knives," Misato said over the comm Link.
Shinji nodded and gritted his teeth, looking to his left. A machine gun shot out of the ground from some sort of NERV elevator. Shinji willed 01 to pick it up into its hands and aim at the angel.
The angel was a sphere of black and white. It was odd and it just hovered above the ground about a hundred meters to Shinji's left.
Shinji willed 01 to pull the trigger and saw the bullets disappear into the sphere, but it suddenly faded.
"Wha?" Shinji whined, looking around. The angel was nowhere in sight.
"Shinji! Watch out!" Rei yelled. Shinji saw 00 look toward Shinji's feet. And Shinji suddenly felt it. A tugging at his lower region.
He felt his stomach bottom out and he looked down and saw that 01 was going to be swallowed up by a void, taking Shinji with it.
"NO! REI!" Shinji screamed, flailing his Evas arms, not able to move its feet.
"SHINJI!" Rei and Asuka yelled at the same time, trying to grip 01s hands. But 01 was already down passed its waist and slipping faster every second.
"What do we do major?!" Maya yelled to the purple haired woman next to her.
"…" Misato watched as 01 disappeared totally.
"DAMMIT!" Asuka yelled. Rei just stared…
Continued….
Authors Notes: I hope you liked this chapter. Thanks to Lynx, my pre-reader…